Competing in a Flat World: Building Enterprises for a Borderless World

“This is essential reading for anyone seeking to compete–and succeed–in the fl at world.”

–John Hagel, Chairman of Deloitte Center of Innovation

 

“Competing in a Flat World provides an extraordinary glimpse into a new kind of organizational architecture, one built around the notion of orchestrating resources you don’t control and doing so in a way that builds both trust and agility. This architecture may well turn out to be the dominant model of the firm for the 21st century. This book is a must read for anyone who wants to compete in a flat world. Every chapter details new and powerful ideas.”

–John Seely Brown, Former Chief Scientist of Xerox Corporation and coauthor of The Only Sustainable Edge

 

“We are led by unstoppable economic forces to connect our resources to form smart networks, either wired or unwired. The authors bring forward the notion of ‘network orchestration,’ an almost one-size-fits-all strategy for organizations to survive and excel in an ever-flattening world.”

–John Chen, Sybase Chairman, CEO and President

 

In the “flat world,” everything changes…above all, what it takes to run a winning company. Success is less about what the company can do itself and more about what it can connect to. Find out how it’s done, from the company that pioneered “flat world” success, Li & Fung, which produces more than $8 billion in garments and other goods for the world’s top brands and retailers–without owning a single factory.

 

Victor and William Fung and Jerry Wind, author of the best-selling The Power of Impossible Thinking, reveal how they’ve replaced “old-fashioned” infrastructure and huge employee bases with a fluid, ever-changing network that can design, manufacture, and deliver almost anything, anywhere. The key to success in this world is a set of principles for “network orchestration,” described for the first time in this book. They examine how these principles can be applied in manufacturing, services and other industries. They show how to build and orchestrate your own world-class global network.

 

    *   Compete “network vs. network”–and win!

    *   Create a “big-small” company that combines scale and agility

    *   Forge loose-tight relationships with suppliers

    *   Balance control with empowerment, stability with renewal

    *   Manage the “bumps” in the flat world–from politics to terrorism

 

Visit the authors' website: www.competinginaflatworld.net 

Sample Chapter(s)

Download Chapter 1: The Orchestration Imperative

Preface

Download the Preface

Table of Contents

Preface: Competing Flat Out xix

 

Chapter 1: The Orchestration Imperative 1

 

PART I: Focus: Firm and Network 23

Chapter 2: Orchestrate the Network 25

Chapter 3: Compete Network Against Network 43

 

PART II: Management: Control and Empowerment 67

Chapter 4: Take Responsibility for the Whole Chain (Whether You Own It or Not) 69

Chapter 5: Empower “Little John Waynes” to Create a Big-Small Company 83

Chapter 6: Establish the Three-Year Stretch to Balance Stability and Renewal 99

Chapter 7: Build the Company Around the Customer 115

Chapter 8: Follow the 30/70 Rule to Create Loose-Tight Organizations 131

 

PART III: Value Creation: Specialization and Integration 143

Chapter 9: Capture the “Soft $3” by Looking Beyond the Factory 145

Chapter 10: Sell to the Source by Bridging Marketing and Operations 155

 

PART IV: Implications for Policy and Practice 169

Chapter 11: Policy: Building a Borderless Business in a World of Nation-States 171

Chapter 12: Practice: A Lever to Move the World 183

 

Conclusion: Are You Ready to Compete Flat Out? 203

Appendix: About Li & Fung 215

Notes 219

Index 225